By Our Special Correspondent
New Delhi: Forty per cent of children in India are under food poverty, according to data revealed by the UNICEF Child Nutrition Report, 2024 . It is much higher than the global average of 27 per cent and thus India is the second highest nation in child food poverty in South Asia, the report said.
The child food poverty resulted from failing governance system and administrative inefficiency and not failing families as the upper echelon wanted to project.The report presented a grim picture of India.
The prevalence of anemia among pregnant women between the age group of 15-49 is 52.2 per cent. Among the children between the age group of 6 and 59 months is 67.1 per per cent. That is to say more than half of the children’s population is of anemia.
UNESCO report stated that the following would be health implications : stunted growth and weakened immune system. Cognitive impairment and high school dropout would be educational impacts.
The economic impact would be productivity loss and increased health care costs since anaemic children need greater healthcare.
The social impact would be increased vulnerability of the child and family, social stigma and discrimination by others.
The report clearly pointed out to the reasons for food poverty among India’s vast population of children which include global food and nutrition crises, conflicts, climate shocks etc.
Above all, the Indian government’s policies and programs, its paradigm development and its priorities are squarely responsible for the deplorable condition of India’s children.
While over 70 per cent of the Indian population is struggling to make ends meet, some businessmen have been credited as the world’s wealthiest men.
